The Hobbit' beats Anchorman 2' at weekend box office

On a busy pre-Christmas weekend at the box office, “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” held off a very different sequel, “Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues.”

Peter Jackson’s “Hobbit” sequel took in $31.5 million in its second weekend of release for Warner Bros., according to studio estimates Sunday. Though the film isn’t matching the pace of the first “Hobbit” movie, “An Unexpected Journey,” ”The Desolation of Smaug” is doing well abroad. It’s now made more than $400 million worldwide, including $96 million internationally over the weekend.

The “Hobbit” topped Will Ferrell’s “Anchorman” sequel, which nevertheless opened strongly in second place. The Paramount Pictures comedy made $26.8 million over the three-day weekend and $40 million since opening Tuesday night.

The much-marketed “Anchorman 2? actually outperformed “The Hobbit” on Friday, but failed to best it over Saturday and Sunday. But the $50 million comedy, which Paramount initially turned down, also suggested it will be more popular abroad than most comedies. It made $13.4 million in six international markets.

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The 2004 original opened with $28.4 million, but only grossed $5.3 million internationally.

“‘Anchorman’ will have a much larger footprint internationally than the last ‘Anchorman’ did,” said Don Harris, head of domestic distribution for Paramount. “Will Ferrell has done a really good job of turning this character into something that travels around the world.”

David O. Russell’s fictionalization of the 1970s Abscam investigation “American Hustle” earned a robust $19.1 million in its first week of nationwide expansion. The Sony Pictures film, starring Christian Bale, Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence, got a boost from its co-leading seven Golden Globes nominations.

The pre-Christmas weekend is a sought-after release date, one that usually offers films especially good legs at the box office as moviegoers flood theaters over the coming weeks. The weekend box office was up nearly 30 percent over the same weekend last year.

But this year’s holiday frame will be particularly competitive. The crowded field of movie openings Wednesday includes Martin Scorsese’s “The Wolf of Wall Street,” Ben Stiller’s “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” the Robert De Niro and Sylvester Stallone comedy “Grudge Match,” the Justin Bieber documentary “Justin Bieber’s Believe” and Keanu Reeves’ “47 Ronin.”

Despite some high-profile summer bombs, the 2013 box office is on track to narrowly surpass last year’s record box office of $10.8 billion, with one weekend to go in the year.